Heritage of Magicians
by Sayoko Noari
Summary: Thank you for beta, Lunar Wave. x) Back in time, Flonyard wasn't exactly a peaceful place. In the whole land, evil ghosts and monsters terrorized the local gods, animals… all those who lived here! Historians today described that time as the "Era of Evil".


**Heritage of Magicians**

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**Prologue:  
Have you heard of this story?**

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_Back in time, Flonyard wasn't exactly a peaceful place. In the whole land, evil ghosts and monsters terrorized the local gods, animals… all those who lived here! Historians today described that time as the "Era of Evil". During those times, people lived in small groups scattered around the forest. Because of this lack of unity, those people were easier to prey on by the monsters._

_Everyone knew they would soon have to deal with this situation, sooner or later. So, one dark night, when the moon didn't shine, all of the tribes gathered together. They talked about what they should do. And after a few hours, they decided... Everyone will be divided into four big groups. These four groups will establish new cities that could protect them against monsters. Groups will disperse in the four cardinal directions. In the morning, nobody was left in the forest._

_Those who went to the North established our country, the Biscotti Republic. The commander of this group was Queen Rina Fiametta Biscotti._

_Those who went to the West established the Pastillage Territory. The Leader of this group was a woman, Queen Azucena Clementine Pastillage. Thanks to her kind attitude, her subjects did not complain and followed her every order. She doesn't have a single problem with her group._

_Those who went to the South established the Kamiberu Kingdom. The King was Hiram Kamiberu de Glauco. He was strong and knew how to lead his group._

_And those who went to the East established the Galette Lion Territory. This group's leader was King Gilles Gallete des Rois._

_All four of them were great rulers; thanks to their actions, people looked up to them. And to this day, their descendants remain to be the rulers of our lands. The four established new cities and towns within their territory. Everyone in town was given work. The rulers are willing to take the advice given to them. But they have yet to deal with the main problem– the monsters. How long can they survive without any protection against them? No one could truly answer this question. So around their cities, people built walls and moats to keep the monsters out. Many times these walls were damaged but the citizens never gave up and persevered with their work._

_And then, one day... One day, they came. The mages appeared. A group of 48 powerful magicians. Twelve of whom arrived in our beloved country. Six wizards, six witches. And where they came from, nobody knows, not even to this day. Their power was amazing. They were able to protect all of us and fought against the evil monsters and ghosts. After a few years, they decided to go against all the evil monsters and ghosts, with no holding back._

_The battle was fierce. Multitudes of monsters were defeated, but many of the mages were lost in battle as well. In the end, only one mage was left in each country. These four remaining mages were said to be the strongest among all of them. And, according to legend, each of these mages had the ability to turn into an animal._

_Among these four survivors is the Witch of Biscotti: Emily don Joaquin. She was a woman in her mid-twenties. She had long blue hair, ears and tail; her eyes were dark green, shining like twin emerald. Her weapon was a fan and she was able to manipulate Air as well as the other natural elements. Emily's animal form was a snow fox._

_The second of the survivors is the Witch of Kamiberu: Rina van Lowell. She was a young lady, maybe around sixteen years old. She had grey hair, long brown ears, and amethyst eye. She specialized in healing magic and she could turn into a small bunny._

_The last two survivors were twins. The Wizard of Galette was Danny de Wiley, and the Wizard of Pastillage, Don de Wiley. The two had light brown hair, ears and tail. Their eyes were blue. The two of them can transform into a pair of cheetahs._

_But the war wasn't over yet. The monsters and ghosts were still lurking around. So these last four mages decided to seal them away. They devised a spell specifically to seal them away. After a few days, they found the remaining monsters and ghosts. And thus, the final battle began. It was long and hard, but in the end, the mages won. Everyone was happy because there was nothing left that they should fear. But the mages suddenly vanished. Since then, nobody saw them. But it is said that the power that continues to flow in all of Flonyard, Flogna Energy, is their heritage._

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"Umm… Miss Éclair?" A girl interrupted the speaker, raising her hand as she did so. "I have a question."

The storyteller, a green-haired, lop-eared doggirl, looked towards her. "What's the matter, Kim?"

"Are they really dead? I always thought that mages were immortal." said the girl. Everyone around the young child turned and looked towards Éclair. Éclair could tell from the looks of their faces how badly they wanted to hear this part of the story. Éclair groaned slightly, hoping to avoid having to go off-topic.

"This is an old story, so nobody really knows the truth behind it."

Her reply was definitely ignored by the children, who were incessantly craving for the whole story. Éclair sighed once more and continued:

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_When the mages disappeared, the people were worried, wondering as to where they could have gone. Everyone wanted to thank them. So then, the people were looking everywhere even in the most unlikely of places. There are those that claimed that the mages used potions for immortality, and claiming that they must be around. However, no matter what they did, nobody ever saw them. Everyone missed them, but after a few months, they finally grew accustomed to their absence._

_Five years after their disappearance, a hermit came to Biscotti. He was thin and haggard, quite weakened by his trip. However, according to rumors, he was wise. Queen Rina soon learned that this man had come to her territory and called him to the royal castle. She was nice to him, and he was very grateful to the treatment he received. And, so, one day he told her:_

"_Don't worry, my lady. In the future, the mages shall return. I don't know when exactly, but I will assure you this much. They shall return. Maybe they'll return after a few days or even months… Maybe they'll even return after many years had passed and we'd already be nothing more than legend. But for now, don't worry. Now, peace reigns across the land; all evil has been purged and erased. So for now, you should enjoy life, and continue to make your lands flourish and blossom until your legacy shines brighter than the sun in the sky."_

_And with these words, he raised his arms into the sky. The queen looks to where he points, seeing the beautiful blue sky. She turns back only to find that the old hermit had disappeared, as though he has never been there in the first place._

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"That's all." Éclair sighed, finally finishing her little side story. "No mages have arrived, and in my opinion…" Éclair stopped short there. She was about to say: There was no way anyone can be immortal, so they must all be dead. But she didn't want to break the children's fantasies. "Well… maybe they will come. But I really hope they won't."

"Eh? Why Éclair?" Éclair grimaced upon the question. They were all pouting at her. Oh, how she hated having to babysit… Well she'll have to explain herself soon.

"Well, if they do come, wouldn't that mean we are in danger, yet again?" The group nodded in affirmation and realized what she meant.

"But I hope that they would call them… Even as a friendly visit or something!" A nearby boy said, "I heard that the queen could call them!"

"I don't know about that… I mean…" Éclair fidgeted a bit, thinking of a way to get around that. She gave up trying to find an easy way to get the point across. She gave up. "Maybe that's true… maybe it's not! Who really knows?" Éclair replied without thinking, looking around, trying to find a way to change the topic. She ended up looking at the sky. "Oh, it's time for bed. You should all go home soon or your parents will get angry with me."

The children whined and complained of such an abrupt ending. But they didn't have all that much of a choice, as their parents are soon out looking for them, and they didn't want them getting angry. So they left Éclair, who sighed and plopped down on a nearby bench. She rested a bit and contemplated the story that she had just told the children. Looking up at the night sky, she soon found herself wishing.

_I really hope we won't end up needing them at all..._

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At that same time, under the Biscotti Castle, in a dark, cold room, a silhouette walked around. It soon appeared and looked into a giant mirror with ornaments as ancient as the castle itself…


End file.
